THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A section of Nair leaders in the BJP has been trying to thwart the alliance between the party and the Bharat Dharma Jana Sena floated by SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan, it is said.
The BJP’s Nair lobby consists of former BJP state presidents P. S. Sreedharan Pillai and P. K. Krishnadas and general secretary A. N. Radhakrishnan.
Mr Sreedharan Pillai, who is close to Mr Natesan and NSS general secretary G. Sukumaran Nair, has ruffled the feathers of the RSS leadership.
A few days back, Mr. Pillai had spoken against BDJS leader Tushar Vellapally’s aspirations of becoming a central minister or getting a Rajya Sabha berth.
However, Mr Sukumaran Nair told DC: “I have neither any apprehension on the BJP forming an alliance with the BDJS nor am I playing a role against it.”
Mr Natesan told DC that M. Pillai had good relations with him as well as Mr Nair. He hoped that a leader of Mr Pillai’s stature would not work against the alliance.
Sources close to Mr Pillai told DC that he would not be against the alliance. But another prominent BJP leader said that the NSS- BJP leaders’ tussle was meant to create a rift.
“Mr Pillai had informed the BJP leadership that he was not interested to contest the Assembly elections. But Mr. Radhakrishnan and Mr Krishnadas would be in the fray. They would not like to lose the Ezhava votes,” said the BJP leader.
